MotF 141: Eryr Pwerus

Eryr Pwerus (The Powerful Eagle)
The United Kingdom of Cymbrowy, Lloegr, and Efrog

After the standoff at Catraeth, the Anglish kingdom of Diera was forced to continue its offensives against the Celtic Gododdin. While the Celts were on their last legs, at least in that region, it was still difficult to hold them down for good. Mynyddog, a general who had picked the troops to fight in Catraeth, sent 600 more to wage war against the Anglish, putting up a pretty solid battle before eventually being forced back to Alba. The stand made by Mynyddog wouldn't go unnoticed, however, and the Anglo-Saxon's push into Britain turned from a viral push into a slow trickle. By the year 800 AD, the Anglos still had yet to secure Cymry/Cymbrowy (Wales), Cornyw (Cornwall), along with parts of Hwmbria (Northumbria), Gwladyrhaf (Somerset), and Caerodor (Bristol). The 9th and 10th centuries marked the height of Anglo-Saxon domination, as chaos would overtake the eastern portion of the island by 1000. The Welsh kingdoms, without a considerable offensive from Diera and the north, managed to stay one step ahead of the slowly-stalling invaders. After a few centuries, they were far more ready to fight than they were in the 700's. They were just waiting for the right moment.

Luckily, that right moment came for the Welsh in 976, when the Empire of Rogaland (OTL Norway) invaded the Saxon kingdom of Essex [1], attempting to force them into a monarchical union. Their invasion, however grueling (the Vikings were not as amazing as they were IOTL), marked an opportunity for the Brythonic kingdoms of Deheubarth and Gwynned. Both principalities, being the most powerful Breton states left on the islands, formed a dynastic union meant to help take down Essex. They quickly secured other Celtic lands, some even peacefully. The new Kingdom of Cymbrowy was able to ally with Rogaland, and used their naval technology to their advantage. As Essex was surrounded on all sides, the country collapsed back into its constituent kingdoms, making it much easier for Cymbrowy to take over. Eventually, as the haze settled and Rogaland inevitably withdrew, the border between Cymbrowy and the Anglo-Saxon states was set midway across the island.

Of course, this odd British cold-war only lead to the propagation of the feudal system. Because of this, technological progress was stalled, and the standoff lasted for hundreds of years. Even by the 1300's, the Welsh had only systematically resettled the Anglo-Saxons into specific areas. However, when King Cadogan ascended to the Welsh throne in 1354, he slowly implemented his policies to take over the Saxon kingdoms. He took over the kingdoms of Diera, Lindsey, and Lincoln during his reign. In response to this, the Anglo-Saxons finally began to ally with one another again, forming the Kingdom of England (although not the one we know and love). Of course, with Welsh having become the dominant language over the hodgepodge that was "Anglish", the kingdom went by the name Lloegr everywhere else. From there until the 1600's, when the feudal system finally began to peter out as Islamic invention crossed the border from Iberia into Western Europe, the rivalry between Cymbrowy and Lloegr was pretty consistent. By that point, however, the kings of Cymbrowy and Lloegr were both very closely related, and Lloegr was failing economically. After spending 1/4 of their GDP on a failed missionary effort in Ireland, Lloegr was forced to give up their independence and unify with their Welsh enemies. Efrog, after making appeals in the 1800's, was elevated to "kingdom" status as it essentially had its own culture (a mix of Albans, Cymbrowy, and Saxons). Today, while the so-called United Kingdom is still pretty much a backwater country, it is definitely ruled by the Welsh. [2]

[1] - Essex took on a very England-esque role in this TL. It unified with Kent, along with many other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. However, as it was mostly ruled by Saxon kings, it could also be called "Saxonland".

[2] - A few small notes about this world. Firstly, as there was no real Renaissance, technology is still on an 1700's level, with the Americas being much less colonized. Lloegr also has a high independence movement; they held a referendum in 2014, but it wasn't recognized by the King.​